Looking to buy a new boat...need advise please

I have been looking to buy a new boat lately and am not sure what I want. The problem is that the lake I boat on most frequently can get pretty choppy at times. I work night shift, so getting up early in the morning to beat the traffic is out of the question. I have never owned or even ridden in or behind an inboard. I have always heard that they ride rough and are tougher to negotiate at slow speeds. My qustion is: are there any inboards on the market that will have a decent ride in the chop? or should I buy an I/O with a 350 Mag and Bravo III? If I were to buy an inboard I would prefer a v-drive. I spend about 80% of my time on the water either wakeboarding, tubing or skiing. I have a Malibu, Mastercraft and Correct Craft dealers here locally and would prefer to buy one of those brands. Also, I have a maximum depth of 24-1/2' inside my garage. Sorry about the long post. Thanks

Lots of options there. Obviously the deeper the V, the better the ride. A wide, flat bottom will ride the worst. If the condtions are really choppy are you going to ride or cruise? For the MasterCraft line, price no object, I would go with the X-45 first, X-Star second. CC, SV-211 first, Air 226 second. Don't know enough about Malibu to comment. The X-2 and SAN 210 TE ride rough in chop, but are great performers.

Steve,

Time for you to test drive all of the boats you mentioned and then make a decision. Everyone has opinions, yours is the only one that matters. Formulate your own after testing driving the boats AND after evaluating the dealership.

One suggestion, ensure you check your other garage measurements as well. Width and height can be a factor depending on the boat you look at and the size/shape of your garage. Depth can be mitigated via a breakaway trailer and swim step removal.

I came from a Semi-V Jet Boat to a CC SV211 Team and didn't have a hard time adjusting to a V drive or the change in manuverability. I have also found the 211 to handle chop well and it's an effective multi-purpose boat. It's my recommendation.

Back before "wakeboard boats" the inboard "ski" boat was built to minimize the wake and to shape what wake it had to suit a water skier in a slalom course. The boats were smaller (18 to 19 feet), very narrow at the stern and really flat across the bottom. They were awful in a heavy chop.

Wakeboard boats tend to be the opposite. 21 to 23 feet in length, a lot wider, broad across the transmom, and with some amount of deadrise ("V"). They are not too bad in the chop.

As far as negotiating at slow speeds: If by "slow" you mean 8-15 MPH then an inboard does much better than any I/O I have ever driven. At idle, going forward, I would rate them about the same, perhaps a very small edge to the I/O. Inboards have no significant amount of steering in reverse, and the stern tends to kick one direction (which once you get used to it you can use to your advantage).

The 24-1/2 feet depth in your garage is going to be a tight fit. You will certainly need to remove the swim platform and have a trailer with a swing away tongue.

If I was you I would certainly get a ride in a boat similar to what you are thinking about before you buy one. One possible way to do that is to use the forum "find a 3rd, be a 3rd" here on wakeworld discussion to ride along with someone.

Thanks for the advise everyone. I'm going to look at a Malibu this weekend if I have time (LSV21). I have also heard good things about the X-2 except that it rides rough (compared to other V-drives). I really like the CC's also, my local dealer has a 2000 Super Air Nautique in my price range but it is a big block and I'm afraid it will just use too much extra gas and add to my already high insurance premiums. I'm not in a big hurry to buy something right away, just trying to do as much research ahead of time. BTW my garage actually measures 25'X 25' with a 7' tall door. I know I'll have to remove the swim platform, fold the tongue in and collapse the tower everytime but a 21' boat should fit right?? Thanks

steve, i would check the height on the various towers when folded down. some of them will not fit in a 7 foot tall opening. buy the way my choice was an 05 malibu vlx. check out all the boats you are interested in and by all means.....CHECK OUT THE DEALER. YOU WILL HAVE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE ONE YOU PICK UNTIL THE WARRANTY IS OVER!!!!!!

Steve, dealerships love to give demos. Spend a day taking free rides in all the boats, I say all because you need to try all of them to make an educated decision and weigh all your options, including price. Once you drive an inboard (direct drive or V-drive) you will never go back. They take a little to get used with backing up and such but well worth the purchase.